The theme for the week was R&B and the mentor was Usher, so my expectations weren’t very high. Frankly, anything I liked was likely to be called old by Simon.
Siobhan Magnus
Through the Fire by Chaka Khan
Didn’t really come together on the opening. Then it got pitchy. Then it just got bad. Really bad.
Her worst performance, by far. I would assume she’s probably safe, but it’s based upon prior performances, not the one last night.
Casey James
Hold On I’m Coming by Sam and Dave
He looked rather stiff walking up to the mic, but then he relaxed. Solid, bluesy performance. Yes, it was safe, but this style really works for him.
The Wife really liked it!
Michael Lynche
Ready for Love by India Arie
I really wasn’t expecting anything different this week. He’s been doing R&B for several weeks now; he’s not going to change anything up.
But I was pleasantly surprised. The almost-acoustic version he did was really nice.
The Wife said it was just different enough.
Didi Benami
What Becomes of the Broken Hearted by Jimmy Ruffin
Ok, I’m tired of the crying. This woman is way to unstable to survive in the music business. She’s starting to remind me of Jeremiah Andrews from Season 7.
The performance wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t quite there either. The Wife observed that her voice just didn’t match the song.
Tim Urban
Sweet Love by Anita Baker
“It’s bad news when they start off sitting on the stairs,” said the Wife.
It wasn’t bad at first, but he sounded better in the clip from the rehearsal. It got worse as the song went on. It was very karaoke by the end.
Then he laughed at the judges critiques. While that will certainly garner him plenty of VoteForTheWorst.com votes, it doesn’t usually encourage others to vote.
Andrew Garcia
Forever by Chris Brown
Wow. That was really good. I’m not a fan of Chris Brown’s music, but Andrew’s version was very entertaining. A cool acoustic version that really worked.
His first good performance in a long time.
Katie Stevens
Chain of Fools by Aretha Franklin
Katie was a little off-beat on the opening and was pitchy at points. But a good performance.
“So much better than last week’s disaster,” said the Wife.
Lee DeWyze
Treat Her Like a Lady by Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose
I liked it, although I’m getting a bit tired of the Dave Matthews soundalikes.
The Wife thought it was his best performance, and that he finally let go.
The song really grew on me, as the performance went on.
Crystal Bowersox
Midnight Train to Georgia by Gladys Knight
Definitely a great song, and one that should work for Crystal.
She traded in her guitar for a piano, however. She didn’t seem really comfortable playing. It was clearly distracting her.
It got better when she stood up and walked away from the piano, but the Wife thought she looked uncomfortable not having her guitar.
It was good, but not her best performance.
Aaron Kelly
Ain’t No Sunshine by Bill Withers
Another American Idol overplay, but I like the song. It wasn’t bad, but his voice was almost too thin for the song.
I really liked the repetitive part. “Yeah, that was the best part of the performance,” said the Wife. “The rest fell flat.”
Decent performance, but a bit boring.
Surprise, surprise, the best of the night was Lee. Crystal, Michael, and Casey were all good, and Andew gets props for stepping it up.
The worst, by far, was Siobhan. And it was clear that she new it. After she stormed past the backstage camera in the green room, she was never seen again. Not a great example of sealing with adversity.
Still, I can’t imagine she’s in danger after her previous performances, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see her in the Bottom 3.
Other than that, it’s between Didi and Tim. Tim’s performance was much worst, but he does have the VFTW backing. He certainly needs it. It’ll be interesting to see whether they can save him this week.